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Today’s weather got up to 88*F — so Hailey and I went to Horse Quarters farm and she caught up on horseback riding. Somehow, she managed to stay cool and comfortable in the fancy outfit.
Horses and other pets can’t wear hearing protection. Do you think PETA will lobby for deregulation of sound suppressors someday?
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Keltec PMR30 with a flash hider and a Trijicon RMR sight.
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Two photos from a test session.
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Hailey has two identical holsters in different colors. One has a Taurus 24-7 with Viridian X5L, the other M&P9 with Streamlight TLR2. Both can be switched from left to right hand configuration. An M1911 with a Surefire light would fit the same holsters.
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Head Down/ATI rifle with Magpul furniture, Insight MRDS, Gemtech Halo and Milspec Monkey patch.
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Going to SHOT show, I grabbed a random gun case from several on the floor. That proved a mistake — the case wouldn’t stay closed! Both latches popped off at intervals, and after a while it was held together as much with the three locks as with the latches. The case sides had enough flex that the guns could have dropped out. I didn’t take a heavier case as none of mine had rollers. On the way back, a man next to me on the shuttle bus noticed the pathetic state of my case and suggested that it would be worth replacing. Turned out he was a representative for several companies, including Explorer Cases. A few weeks later, two gun cases and a camera case came in the mail. Today, I put several guns in one of them in preparation for travel. So far, I am quite impressed: these are waterproof, shockproof and very sturdy. They can roll, so I won’t have to lug all that weight. Handles are large and smooth, something that standard cases lack.
Now I just need to buy more foam to make pre-configured slots for other weapons.
I have a feeling that this type of luggage will become a habit. It will be nice not to worry about scope zero shifting in transit or the case falling apart completely from rough handling.
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After years of thinking, I may have figured out which aspect of life makes a person feel un-free. It’s the frequency of having to perform submission rituals.
When a feudal lord rides by peasants and they have to kneel in the mud to show respect, that’s a submission ritual. It’s little different from dogs rolling over to expose bellies to the leader of their pack. In our modern life, a typical submission ritual is turning on the dome light and putting hands in plain view when stopped by police. It’s standing with legs and arms spread for the TSA. It’s being polite to abusive bureaucrats from IRS, INS, ATF and every other abusive Federal and State agency who aren’t being polite back to us.
The aversion to rolling over for others is why some people prefer to live in remote areas. Few officials venture into the bush. Less connected threats, like dangerous wildlife, can be dealt with without fear of bringing the rest of the mafia down on you in retaliation. Others, content to live in cities, avoid regulated activities to minimize their interaction with controlling organizations. The greater the amount of effort required to live unmolested by the authorities, the less free a society is. United States does not look good in that respect…unfortunately, neither does the rest of the world.
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If the goal is to avoid indignities great and petty, how does one become more free? Not minding them is one way, but learning to ignore evil doesn’t free us or our beloved from its pysical manifestations. Spiritual freedom does not makes on breathe easier in Zyklon-B atmosphere.
Money can insulate in some cases: TSA doesn’t screen private plane passengers yet, but that may be a matter of time. Private land affords a degree of insulation from official busy-bodies. So earn more and delegate dealing with the IRS to hired accountants? Not practical for most people.
A revolution would do it, with all the past sources of indignities becoming lead sponges. New sources of interference will arise, most likely more outrageous than the old. Changing the world significantly is a task of a lifetime, foregoing other interests and dreams.
And all that explains why political power has been so attractive to many. A Medieval Bishop or king may have gone decades without encountering anyone to whom he was in pawn. Controlling the lives or others could have been a side effect, not the intent of seeking power. The intent — at least from the freedom-seeking perspective — was to have no one above in the pecking order, to be the alpha not for the dominion over others, but to avoid being subjugated.
The last option is to go off the grid, to areas which no one claims effectively. Become a country of one family and be too obscure for the great powers to notice, too well-armed for the others to try. The USSR used to prohibit escape. Cuba and North Korea still do. The US makes expatriation more difficult with every year, but it is still a viable option. Unfortunately, expatriation requires to view this country as worthless and few are prepared to get more freedom by giving up the dream.
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| Aperture Value | f/2.5 | Focal Length | 20 mm |
| ISO | 400 | Shutter Speed Value | 30 sec |
This photo was taken with the little Panasonic G2. I had to guess focus and composition because the viewfinder was pitch-black. Starts recorded as short streaks.
| Aperture Value | f/1.8 | Focal Length | 20 mm |
| ISO | 400 | Shutter Speed Value | 1/60 sec |
The NVG photo was done by pressing the camera lens against the ATN PVS14 objective, so I have no idea if the focal plane was even aligned right. Looks reasonably sharp. Some of the bright dots in the background are stars. The main difference was that at equivalent aperture, 15 times less light was needed to get an exposure and I could focus and compose without guessing!
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Most video and photos will be up upon my return, but here’s a little sample of today’s range time. Glassing the target:
The purpose of the 24″ barrel is reduced muzzle blast and about 200fps of added velocity over the 18″ model and nearly 300fps over 16″ rifles. Overall length is half an inch shorter than an AR10 with only a 16″ barrel.
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SU16 is my current favorite 223 — enough that it is my house gun. Mine is very heavily modified with Keltec and Red Lion parts, equipped with light/laser, red dot and a sound suppressor. The full-up weight is probably 50% more than this base model, folding receiver sport-utility carbine. But in its original form, SU16 is light, has a very long sight radius, folds up for storage with two 10rd or one 30rd magazine in the stock. And it’s a clean-running piston design.
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SU16D has either a 9″ or a 12″ barrel (shown). With a sort stock, a 60-round magazine and a red dot sight, it’s quite a rapid room-cleaner. Loud, too.
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Keltec is one of the most pleasant companies I’ve ever visited. People seem friendly to each other, helpful to me and working with them is a joy. Went for another range trip today, mostly to shoot video of their guns in action. Ended up mostly filming Dana with guns being a minor side show. Did get to shoot a few items, including an SU16E with an experimental rail (a major win), an RMR30 with Gemtech’s G5 suppressor and the new shel/fume deflector (which works great), Sub2000 in 40S&W, and an optically sighted PMR30. Here I am, using it at 35 yards from the target. Normally, I shoot cameras and guns from one knee, so most of my pants need a patch on the left knee. Here, I am collecting dust all over just to get steadier for the long shot. The extended barrel threaded for a flash hider also worked great: no more bright muzzle flash.
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Tried shooting RMR30 for a group despite wind moving both bullets and the gun itself. Gemtech G5 sound suppressor worked really well, but it was also a bit heavier than the tiny dedicated 22WMR can. Fifteen rounds of CCI Maxi Mag 40gr at 35 yards. I am not the best rifle shooter out there, so my results are merely an approximation of what the rifle can do. Due to the short distance, the scope was set at 6x. This was fun!
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Another rack was on the range being test fired, and about twice as many were already in boxes at the shipping room.
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Take a 9mm carbine, top it with 3x scope and hang tins where the wind moves them a bit. Next, make the cans dance with 33 rounds of 9mm. Smiles all around a guaranteed.
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Originally published at VolkStudio Blog. Please leave any comments there.
Originally published at VolkStudio Blog. Please leave any comments there.
